


Casino Delivers The Goods

by DixieDale



Series: Promises [4]
Category: Garrison's Gorillas
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:42:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28482588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DixieDale/pseuds/DixieDale
Summary: When Casino makes a promise, you can bet your bottom dollar he's gonna keep it!
Series: Promises [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2086632





	Casino Delivers The Goods

**Author's Note:**

> During the war, fairly early on.

Garrison had been putting them off for at least a couple of months. Well, Casino, actually. The others might not always share the same tastes as their lieutenant as to what constituted a pleasant and relaxing time, but at least the three of them felt he had the right to make that decision himself. Casino, though, the safecracker had taken the notion that Garrison was so involved in the war and the jobs that he was letting the real LIVING just slide past him, and Casino was determined to remedy that, at least for one night. 

The guys tried to convince Casino that Garrison probably meant it when he'd said he wasn't interested in what the safecracker had in mind, all that rip-roaring LIVING. After all, the man was dealing with trying to keep them and a whole bunch of other people AMONG the living, which was still a worthy goal for their lieutenant to be focusing on, one that took a lot of time and energy. That he was dealing with things that maybe even should take priority over hell-raising and whoring - well, for Garrison anyway. That maybe after all the blow-em-ups and flying bullets and leaking blood and bone-pounding headaches from getting slammed into things, maybe the man just craved a nice quiet peaceful time when he had the freedom to HAVE a little free time. 

Goniff, for his part, opted for giving the man a quiet evening with a nice drink and a nice bit of dinner, followed by a nice lay-in in the morning, maybe with breakfast (and lunch, maybe dinner too) served in bed. He argued that the lieutenant would probably like that, along with having time for a nice long read in one of those military books he fancied. "Maybe some nice music on the player, even." Casino had gagged and given his honest opinion of that scenario. It was not favorable.

It was obviously a case of the two sides speaking totally different languages, and they finally just stopped trying to convince the other, though each side continued to think they had the right of it. That didn't stop Casino from coming up with possibilities, of course. Well, what did you expect? 

So, despite Garrison trying everything he could think of to get that idea squashed, Casino just kept talking about it, promising he was going to make sure Garrison had one hell of a night to remember. After one such enthusing, full of vivid descriptions of 'flowing booze and easy broads with skills like you wouldn't believe!', during what was supposed to be a rest period while they were heading for the coast after blowing up a few square miles of something or other, Lieutenant Craig Garrison resolutely turned his mind away from those forms in his desk, the ones where, with one stroke of a pen, he could send any one of his wild cards cons back to prison. No, he refused to be that petty, though the temptation DID linger somewhere in the background of his mind. 

"Those broads I told you about? Betty Merkowski and her crew? You remember, I told you about Betty! Boobs out to here, and could swing her hips like she had ball bearings in there! Hell, like being inside a washing machine when she got wound up, ya know? What a ride!! Knew her back in Chi-town and she's moved her traveling entertainment gig over here! I got it all set up! Dammnnnn, the Warden's gonna LOVE this!" Casino bragged, not noticing (or at least pretending not to notice) the lack of enthusiasm that optimistic crowing engendered in his teammates.

It was harder to overlook that reproachful comment from Actor, the one preceded by a drawn-out sigh.

"And here I was hoping you had realized this was NOT a good idea, Casino."

Casino bristled. "Hey, I promised the Warden was gonna have a tip top night to remember and I meant it! How long has it been since he's gone on a real hoot-and-holler? That is, if you can call it that, those once in a while, can-it-GET-any-more-boring twenty-four-hour-if-that-much leaves of his. So the museum and that fancy-schmancy old-rich-guys club Richards got him into, they can wait til next time. Doubt anything's gonna change between those times either; probably even the dust'll be the same. Nah, now he's got a little time off, just an overnight, maybe - but this time, he's gonna have a real blast, a time he'll be talkin' about for a month of Sundays! When Casino promises someone a time to remember, he delivers, sure enough!"

The other three teammembers exchanged uneasy looks. They had a really bad feeling about this. Still, they pulled out their wallets, reluctantly handed over the toll Casino demanded. 

"Like paying to attend your own funeral," Chief commented, putting his wallet back in his pocket, and only Casino disagreed with that glum sentiment.

"Maybe 'e'll 'ave something else to do, won't take the bait to show up," Goniff said hopefully. He was thinking seriously about tipping Garrison the wink, but figured Casino would be so pissed it wouldn't be worth any of them trying to live through that. From the looks on Actor and Chief's faces, they'd come to a similar reluctant conclusion.

"Man, he gets a load of Betty and her girls, he's gonna wonder why he didn't try something like this a hell of a long time ago!" Casino gloated. 

"Never mind trying to see the Lieutenant don't show up, Goniff; you think maybe WE can maybe manage to get thrown in the stockade or something for the night?" Chief offered, not really meaning it, but not really NOT meaning it either.

"Kinda agree, Chiefy, but if I'm gonna be out all that cabbage and 'ave the lieutenant pissed off at the w'ole lot of us, I at least want to be able to snaffle enough from the table to feel I got SOMETHING outta the deal."

Actor sniffed with contempt. "I hardly think it will be worth the time or effort, Goniff, from what I have seen of the menu, if you want to call it that. Now, if you had all just gone with MY idea, that would have been something entirely different." 

That got a shared snort from all three of his teammates. Well, Actor's ideas of what constituted fine entertainment, fine drink, fine food and fine women didn't really make the grade with the others. 'Fine' didn't necessarily equal 'satisfying', not to them. So maybe Chief and Goniff didn't want to overload Garrison with 'merriment and revelry' (not Casino's words obviously, but at least they point to the general idea and are more acceptable in print) to the point of freaking him out totally or ending up with him in a med unit or on penicillin; still, boring him to death didn't seem like something they should be aiming for either. 

"Hell, Beautiful, fish eggs on toast and champagne, and some nose-in-the-air overpriced broads thinking they're too good to cuddle up with somebody without you forking over a couple months pay? This is supposed to be a party, for the love of . . . Everyone standing around listening to you moan on about some dead Romans ain't gonna impress the Warden. And if you think I'm gonna be wearing one of those 'toga' thing-a-ma-gigs, yer outta yer everlovin' mind! Got nothing against sheets, ya know, but I wanna be in between em, not wearin' em! Naw, what I got lined up, that's just the ticket. Betty and her broads, all they got planned - it'll be a blast! Though, I might see if she can throw in some of them raw oysters you were raving about. Might be just what the Lieutenant needs to let him really let his hair down and party!" 

Goniff looked at Chief and shuddered. Chief agreed. {"The lieutenant is going to be SO pissed!"}

Garrison opened his eyes to the familiar sight of his own bedroom at the Mansion, laid a tentative hand on the tender knot on the back of his head, glanced around and breathed a sigh of relief that he was alone. "Heaven save me from any more of Casino's wild ideas," he muttered as he thought over the events of the prior night. He'd never thought he'd have to fight that hard to hold onto his virtue, such as it was, much less his sanity when he responded to that urgent message from the guys.

A soft tapping at the door told him he wasn't alone anymore and he cringed. Considering the other surprises he'd had recently, he wasn't sure he could take another one.

"Go away. He's sleeping. No, he's gone on vacation. In fact, he's in France on an extended mission, probably til after the war," he growled in a low-pitched voice.

"Ei, thought you might be awake by now," Goniff chuckled as he opened the door with one hand while balancing a loaded tray on the opposite arm. He had a new book on military history tucked under his arm, one he'd sorted out the last time he was in London, just for the right time. He'd even paid for it, in real money, not just snaffled it! There weren't many people he'd have gone to that extreme for, but their lieutenant - Goniff was starting to develop a real soft spot for the man for some reason.

"Don't worry; Sergeant Major 'as the others out on the obstacle course. I'm to join in as soon as I get this delivered. 'E knows it might take aw'ile, seeing as 'ow you might 'ave a few things you need me to do, bandage that arm, fetch aspirin, or w'atever."

Garrison pulled himself up against the pillows. "Is it really safe?" he asked suspiciously.

"Oh, pretty much so. Least Betty Merkowski and 'er traveling band of entertainers are off to their next performance."

The sigh of relief from the officer came near to blowing off the sheet. 

"A luau, of all things! Where the hell did Casino come up with an idea like that??!"

"Oh, you know 'im, always thinking along exotic lines. No worse than w'at Actor 'ad in mind, though. Livelier, I'll admit, since Actor was thinking of a 'reading' of some famous Roman play, everyone dressed in togas and the likes. Place filled with w'at 'e called 'etaerae, some from the really 'igh class places, you know? Least Casino wasn't intending to break the bank; Betty and 'er lot were expensive enough, mind you, with all the extras, but not like w'at THOSE fancy skirts were likely to charge. 'Ad champagne and oysters and fish eggs on little pieces of toast in mind, Actor did," Goniff remarked. "Seemed rather skimpy to my mind, but you know 'im; elegant and skimpy beats common and 'earty, and not just in food. Can't quite see it that way, myself. More flash up front, but same amount of effort, and you come away still 'ungry after all that."

"Well, Actor's plan would have probably been quieter, anyway. But a luau? And Marchant was willing to have all that going on in that party room of his? A fire pit??! Those torches everywhere? The drums and the ukeleles? What about the rest of the hotel guests? Didn't they object?" he asked, wincing at the memory of what he'd walked in on. He knew it was going to be some time before that elegant room regained any of its elegance; the scorch marks alone . . .

"Well, Casino didn't mention a few of those little details w'en 'e was laying it out for the man. Just described it as a 'nice little party for the Lieutenant, since 'e's been working so 'ard.' Thought 'enri was going to swallow 'is tongue when 'e walked in after 'e started getting complaints about all the noise," Goniff said, shaking his head at the expression on the hotelier's face.

Goniff quickly and efficiently laid out the dishes without mishap, then sat on the foot of the bed with one leg tucked up under him, grinning as he dished up the details as neatly as he'd dished up that simple but surprisingly pleasant meal. It had taken some real bargaining, considering the war and all, laying down a tidy sum, but there were real eggs there, along with the potatoes and toast, even a small slice of ham he'd managed. Goniff swallowed, almost able to taste that ham and eggs, but sternly reminding himself this wasn't for him, it was special for the lieutenant; that was the only reason Mrs. Daws had been willing to let go of those eggs even with the toll, her knowing that's who they were intended for. Had a soft spot of her own, she did.

"See, 'enri was working on a different project, a wedding I think, so 'e set Rene to working with Betty on the details. Now, Rene, 'e speaks English and French and a bit else, but it seems 'e don't speak Bronx, w'ere Betty came from first, OR w'atever you call that Chi-talk from w'ere she ended up. So, w'en she tells 'im they'll need a small pig, 'e got that part but not so much that it was to be roasted, you see? 'E went to 'enri to see w'at 'e should do, that being somew'at out of the usual, but as I said, 'enri was busy so 'e just waved Rene off, told 'im to do w'atever was asked, since it was special for YOU. So Rene went to Mark, who's next in line; now Mark's a farm boy and 'E thought Betty meant a live greased pig, like they use for contests sometimes, at least that's the way I understand it. So that's w'at showed up. Betty just shrugged and didn't make a big deal of it, since Rene already 'ad plenty of food on the buffet line, and besides she thought the pig was cute and might add 'local color'. The pig, now, 'E was more than a little upset; squealed up a ruddy storm 'e did, and wiggled right away from Dory, who'd been trying to pet 'im. Well, all that grease, you know, made 'im slippery as anything. And Betty 'ad a friend of 'ers bring in all those long torches, called tikis, she says, and the wood and coal for the big fire she laid out on that big metal circle of a thing."

Goniff grinned even wider, remembering the wild scene in that elegant party room.

Garrison shuddered, remembering opening the door not knowing what to expect between that phone call and all the noise, and having that small pig run between his feet, almost tumbling him over in its frantic desire to escape. He hoped the hotel staff had been able to catch it; the last he'd seen of the squealing beast was as it exited that open door and headed down the hall. He'd been flat on the floor by then, rubbing the back of his head where it had made sudden impact when he'd been knocked down by the collision with a frantic Rene chasing after the pig.

Everyone else had been making so much noise, between the ukeleles and the drums and the singing, and the cheering on of those swaying and jiggling women in those odd tops and grass skirts, they hadn't much noticed the escaping pig, though.

"And no one considered how smart it WASN'T to have an open fire, in a private dining room of a public hotel, around all those grass skirts, and woven mats, not to mention the rest of those costumes, I suppose," Garrison remarked, glancing down at the bandages on his right arm where his uniform, and his skin, had also taken some fire damage.

"Seems not, though they'd started out with this big metal wire cage over the fire that was supposed to keep things safe. Then someone complained 'ow 'off' that seemed, 'rightly took away the charm and romance' - not that them's the words that first came to my mind - so they took that away. Though Joe, 'e was one of the waiters laying out the food, got 'imself some scorch marks since it was already 'ot. 

"Then Betty leaned over too far, giving Casino a good look down those coconuts she was wearing on 'er top. Well, not really coconuts - don't think coconuts come anyw'ere near that big, considering Betty is Casino's usual type - you know, double 'andful and more on each side - but they were made up to LOOK like coconuts, at least 'alves of them. Then that strap that 'eld everything together popped, and 'e got a real faceful, not that 'e was minding, being it was 'im, but Betty squealed and jumped back, and that skirt of 'ers got too close to the fire, and - well, you know w'at 'appened then."

Oh, yes, Garrison remembered, though he'd really rather not. People shrieking, some because of the flames, though some of the party-goers were still thinking all that yelling was just part of the fun, not realizing those sparks were doing some real damage til one landed on them. The ladies had quickly discarded their grass skirts and mock-coconut top pieces to avoid catching on fire, and since that was pretty close to being all they WERE wearing in many cases, it was an eye-opening experience to say the least. STILL some of the guests hadn't realized the danger, started yanking off their OWN clothes so the ladies wouldn't get too far ahead of them. 

Garrison's uniform jacket had caught fire, just the sleeve, while he was trying to beat out some of the live embers, and he'd quickly snatched it off and tossed it aside. Angie, one of Betty's troupe, thought he was delivering an invitation, and launched herself into his arms with a vivid suggestion he would have been startled at at the best of times, which that wasn't. 

He'd pushed her away, she'd gotten offended and flounced off, tripping over his jacket and fell flat to the floor. He'd tried to help her up and that had given her the idea he'd changed his mind, and proceeded to pull him to the floor on top of her. Goniff had been there, laughing his head off, though dodging flying sparks, and had helped him get free of the woman who'd seemed to sprout a few extra arms and far too many busy hands. 

Garrison had been appreciative, of course, had managed to thank him, though at the same time wanting to swat him one for that smirking "now, not to interrupt if that's not w'at you're wanting, Lieutenant, but unless you're in favor of w'at she's trying to get done," since the woman now had Garrison's pants undone and that was obviously just the start of her intentions, "w'at say I give you a 'and out of the firing line, so to speak?"

A few more errant sparks landed on bare skin and any remaining clothing still present and then it started to get real lively. And that was the scene Henri Marchant, owner of Hotel Marchant, had walked in on.

"You think Henri is ever going to let us back in there?" Garrison asked ruefully.

"Oh, I expect so. Meghada will likely talk 'im around, once she stops laughing so much she can 'andle the phone. Don't know 'ow soon that's gonna be, though; she's made more than a few attempts, but then she'll think on it, on all I told 'er, and it starts 'er off into whoops again."

Goniff picked up the empty tray and started to leave, making sure that new book was on the night stand, nice and convenient. At the door he paused, turned and gave Garrison an impish grin, waggling his eyebrows up and down.

"Well, no matter w'at else, Lieutenant, you can't say Casino didn't keep 'is promise. You know, about giving you a night to remember. Imagine you will, right enough."

And as he pulled the door partway closed and headed down the hall, he grinned again, hearing Garrison's laughing retort, "you can say that again, Goniff. That was a night I never WILL forget, though I'm going to try, I promise!

"I'm going to try real, real hard!" as he settled in to drink his coffee and start that interesting looking book that had magically appeared, to the accompaniment of big band music coming from down the hall. {"Ahhh, now this is more like it!"} 


End file.
